Chapter 81, "The Ballad of Clouds and Water," features a kiss in the snow, but there is no actual kissing scene...

Zhu Qingzhi dared not move, but Zhang Siyue's body drew closer and closer, carrying an urgent feeling of long-awaited reunion and surviving a calamity, almost threatening to devour her.

But this is the ambiguous period, and even if it were improvised, such a move would be absolutely impossible.

But Director Zheng didn't yell "cut," so Zhu Qingzhi had no choice but to grit her teeth and continue acting.

She took a deep breath, pressed her palm against his shoulder for leverage, and twisted to break free from his embrace. She took several steps back before daring to look up at him, but almost immediately looked away as soon as their eyes met.

Snowflakes were falling, almost blurring her vision. She clutched the hem of her dress tightly with both hands, her face flushed, looking exactly like a frightened little rabbit. She stammered, "What... are you doing?"

Zhang Siyue smiled at her, his breath dissipating in the cold wind, revealing his handsome features: "It's snowing."

So? Zhu Qingzhi didn't understand, she really didn't understand, but instinctively she still put on a show of feigned composure and shyness: "Hmm."

The stray hairs on her forehead were blown about by the wind, swaying in the air as they brushed against her cheeks, just like her wavering mood at that moment.

Zhang Siyue suddenly took a step forward, the snow crunching softly under his feet. Just as he raised his hand, Zhu Qingzhi took a step back and quickly tucked her hair behind her ear.

Snowflakes landed on his shoulder and her eyelashes as they gazed at each other through the falling snow.

In the distance, the mountains were hidden in a vast expanse of snow. Sunlight occasionally pierced through the clouds, casting ever-changing light and shadow on their faces. Time seemed to stretch out, almost to the point of stillness.

Suddenly, a "Cut!" broke the silence.

The smile in Zhang Siyue's eyes vanished instantly. He casually kicked away the snow under his feet, his movements filled with indescribable irritation.

Zhu Qingzhi didn't leave immediately. She leaned back against the railing and casually grabbed a handful of snow, kneading it into a small ball.

His movements were very relaxed, but his eyes grew colder and colder.

Director Zheng's voice came through the walkie-talkie, issuing instructions methodically. The cameraman adjusted the camera positions, the lighting technician adjusted the lighting, and the makeup assistant ran over from the studio.

"Didn't I give you the flyer?" Zhang Siyue tugged at the collar of his chunky knit sweater, his tone a little impatient.

Zhu Qingzhi was too lazy to waste words with him. She threw the snowball into the lake, where it splashed whitely like shattering mirrors. She coldly uttered two words: "No."

The main group arrived just in time, their intricate footsteps on the smooth snow breaking the tense atmosphere between the two and calming Zhu Qingzhi's restless mood.

Xiao Zhou handed over the script, smiling broadly, and said, "Sis, Director Zheng was really satisfied just now! It's the first time I've ever seen him smile!"

Zhu Qingzhi remained silent, turned the page of the script, and let the makeup artist's assistant do the work.

Zhang Siyue didn't talk to her anymore. The two stood back to back, completely devoid of the sweetness they had shown when they were engrossed in their role.

Director Zheng's voice came again: "This improvisation went well, keep it up! Memorize your lines again, we'll continue in three minutes!"

So where did the flying pages come from? Zhu Qingzhi sneered and handed the script back to Xiao Zhou, but she wasn't prepared to confront Zhang Siyue head-on.

As everyone gradually left, Zhu Qingzhi adjusted her position and waited for filming to begin.

Zhang Siyue pursed her lips, suddenly turned to the side, blocking the camera, bowed slightly, and spoke very quickly: "I'm sorry, but I did receive a flyer before filming started."

Zhu Qingzhi didn't look at him; her gaze was fixed on the reflector being adjusted in the distance, as if she were just listening to the insignificant noises from the scene.

"Really?" Her voice was very soft, almost carried away by the wind, making sure only the two of them could hear. "What was it?"

Zhang Siyue maintained a slightly bowed posture, as if he were just rehearsing his lines with her before filming began, his voice even lower: "Let's try to get closer by breaking the safe distance."

He paused, then added, "The signature is Director Zheng's official seal."

“Director Zheng’s work stamp…” she repeated softly, as if savoring the meaning of the words, a very slight curve appearing at the corner of her mouth, but without any real smile.

Looking at her like this, Zhang Siyue's initial annoyance at her lack of professionalism was quickly replaced by a more uncertain feeling.

He realized that the matter might be more complicated than he had thought.

*

The phrase "[Yunshuiyao: A Kiss in the Snow]" quietly became a trending topic online, gaining immense popularity and spreading across the entire internet in just half an hour.

A three-minute-long unedited audio-visual recording features handsome men and beautiful women, perfectly timed snowfall, and a fantastic atmosphere.

Moreover, from the perspective of the paparazzi, the man's leaning figure and the woman's slightly upturned neck in the hazy snow scene must have been a fleeting kiss.

Director Zheng's praise of "improvisation" further confirmed that this was an expression of affection between the two parties.

The movie "The Knot" has just started filming. In reality, the male and female leads have only known each other for a month, yet they can have such a deep emotional connection?

Wow, that's an amazing look! They've definitely made it.

[Zhang Siyue's personality doesn't seem like he's the type to take initiative; I've never seen him improvise kissing scenes before?]

[Didn't Zhu Qingzhi refuse to film kissing scenes? She even said at the press conference that her first on-screen kiss was a secret, so she didn't object to it at all?]

[They dare to release a show with such a sensational element as paparazzi? They're either incredibly stubborn or colluding with the production team for publicity!]

In the dressing room, the actors sat together in silence.

Meanwhile, the on-set producer, grabbing his already thinning hair, was yelling at the crew: "How come there are paparazzi? Didn't we patrol the area several times before and after?"

Zhu Qingzhi sat in the corner, aimlessly scrolling through the comments section. Suddenly, her fingertip stopped on a highly-rated analysis; [Note that at 59 seconds, Zhu Qingzhi tripped while backing away, and her ears turned completely red. This kind of physiological reaction can't be acted out.]

Zhu Qingzhi closed her eyes.

Speechless. Has anyone considered that it might be due to the weather?

"Videos taken by paparazzi have already surfaced right after filming started, and they're not even real. It's easy to assume it's a publicity stunt by the production team!" The producer on set scratched his shiny bald head in frustration. "It will also affect the actors."

Now, clarifying or not clarifying is both problematic; it's like putting someone on a hot plate, roasting them from every angle.

He was feeling annoyed when suddenly a clear female voice rang out: "I've clarified."

Zhu Qingzhi waved her phone, her expression seemingly a little embarrassed, but her words betrayed no hint of embarrassment.

The on-site producer opened his mouth, but remained silent for a long time. His face, weathered by time and hardship, displayed an incongruous childlike innocence.

Zhu Qingzhi was genuinely embarrassed and decided to shift the blame: "The agency told me to post it."

Just then, Dani pushed the door open and entered, posing a soul-searching question: "What did you send?"

Zhu Qingzhi: "..."

Is there any chemistry left? Can we still be friends?

Dani rushed forward and snatched Zhu Qingzhi's phone. After seeing the contents of the screen, she gasped in shock.

"You..." Dani held her forehead, her voice trembling, "You only sent those six words?"

Zhu Qingzhi blinked innocently: "Concise and to the point, get straight to the point."

Silence reigned.

The producer's face went from shock to death. Oh, God is against him!

With trembling fingers, he clicked on the trending topics and saw that "[Zhu Qingzhi's response]" had quickly climbed into the top three of the list.

[Zhu Qingzhi v: No kissing scenes, thank you.]

The comment section exploded:

[This woman is so bold! She directly refuted the rumors that the production team was using the show for publicity!]

So it was Zhang Siyue who unilaterally added drama? Wouldn't that be considered workplace harassment?

[Hilarious! This response is so disrespectful to the production team.]

Why does this "thank you" sound so menacing?

With a "thud," the on-set producer's phone slipped from his hand and fell to the floor. He slumped into his chair, his face ashen: "It's all over, everything's ruined..."

Just then, the door to the lounge was pushed open, and Director Zheng appeared in the doorway with a dark expression. He was holding a phone, and the screen was on Zhu Qingzhi's response.

He walked in silently, followed by the production manager. The on-site producer was also very perceptive and cleared out all irrelevant personnel.

Director Zheng's gaze lingered on Zhu Qingzhi's face for a moment, then swept over Zhang Siyue's solemn expression, before finally slamming his phone and script onto the table.

"Tell me everything," he said in a low, unreadable voice. "How do we resolve this situation?"

The dressing room door was tightly closed, leaving only a few core members. The air was even more heavy and colder than when they had just finished filming on location.

Zhang Siyue's agent, Qiao Yong, was the first to object: "Director Zheng, our Siyue was performing according to the 'Flying Page' instructions, not adding scenes on her own. Shouldn't the production team provide a clear explanation regarding the origin of Zhang Siyue's scene?"

Producer Li tapped the table, signaling him to calm down: "We've checked repeatedly, the crew didn't distribute any flyers. You're all experienced actors, how could you be so easily fooled by something like this? Besides, where is that flyer now? Who handled it? It couldn't have vanished into thin air in just half an hour, could it?"

Qiao Yong was momentarily speechless, then immediately changed his target: "The PR plan hasn't even been released yet, and the female lead posted on Weibo without permission? Is that all right? Now our Si Yue has become the target of public criticism, accused of workplace harassment by the entire internet. Did the female lead's team consider future collaborations? Did they consider the future of this drama?"

Dani poked Zhu Qingzhi's forehead hard, then joined the fray: "Shouldn't we protect our artist's image? You must have thought this through carefully, right? And wasn't the whole thing caused by that mysterious flyer? Did you just make it up to save face? Or is someone pulling strings behind the scenes?"

The lounge was in an uproar for a while.

A familiar phone number flashed on Zhu Qingzhi's phone; it wasn't a landline, but Wen Qi's mobile phone.

She had just checked the weather forecast; the heavy rain in Beitang Town had stopped, and the news also said that the cell tower had been repaired.

She ignored everything else, focusing solely on answering the phone. In fact, she did just that, clutching her phone and sneaking out along the wall.

The door had barely opened a crack when she eagerly pressed the answer button. Just then, Director Zheng, without any regard for propriety, called out to her, "Qingzhi, why don't you tell us too?"

Zhu Qingzhi: "..."

ShuanQ, thank you so much.

"Someone forged a promotional video, inducing the male lead to perform intimate actions beyond the script. At the same time, paparazzi precisely filmed and used camera angles to create the illusion of a kissing scene, and quickly bought their way onto the trending topics list. There must be someone pulling the strings behind this. I..."

She had to put her phone behind her back and start typing away, trying to finish the job quickly.

At this moment, Zhang Siyue, who had been silent all along, raised his eyes and interrupted her: "I have someone in mind."

-----------------------

Author's Note: Kiyoshi [cracked]: I need to answer the phone!

Zhang Siyue [cracked]: I'm annoyed too.

Ah Mei [cracked]: I hope I can adjust my schedule this week.